Can Tizen compete with iOS and Android?

Samsung will unveil its first commercial Tizen smartphone at a Samsung Unpacked event in Moscow "in the coming weeks," according to a new report.

The phone will launch in India and Russia, said The Wall Street Journal, which spoke with "people familiar with the matter."

Apparently the announcement event is taking place around the same time as a Tizen developers conference taking place in San Francisco.

Samsung and the Tizen Association both reportedly declined to comment.

Taking its time

Some said Samsung would unveil its first Tizen phone way back in January, but for whatever reason that didn't pan out (it's not like it was the OS's first delay). The Journal said it was thanks to "cold feet" among Samsung's carrier partners in Japan, France and Spain.

Maybe the Korean company needed an extra few months to work out any remaining kinks, too.

Samsung hopes that Tizen will be able to take some market back from Apple's iOS and Google's Android, but not by running on high-end smartphones; instead Samsung is hoping to carve out a niche in which Tizen links multiple kinds of devices, including phones, wearables, appliances, and even vehicles.

The Journal speculates that Samsung will launch Tizen phones first in India and Russia to avoid direct competition with its two big rivals and to take advantage of emerging markets there.

Watch out for Samsung to announce an event in Moscow soon; meanwhile we'll be watching for more info on Tizen's US debut.